Happy Birthday Daddy

Today would have been my Daddy's 75th birthday. Emphysema claimed his life in November of 2007. I am the baby of the family, and I was definitely Daddy's little girl. We also had our share of arguments, probably because we were a lot alike, and the qualities I most dislike in myself were the ones that caused most of the problems between us. But all those things aside, I felt we had a really good relationship. My dad was an honest and fair man. He was very sensitive, and I teased him often about the fact that he would cry at the drop of a hat, something I also get from him. And anytime I get anything new, I "always read the directions first." He was handy and extremely intelligent eventhough he never finished high school. He was an avid reader, and loved crossword puzzles, a trait I didn't inherit, and there are scores of inventions that came down the pike that he had the sketches and ideas for first, but he never acted on them.

My dad played a huge part in the person I am today because he always believed in me and encouraged me. He was fiercely proud of me, and if I could have made it big in show business on sheer belief in me alone, my dad's would have propelled me to stardom and beyond. He took me to my first audition when I was 10, and sat through countless rehearsals through my pre-driving years. If he had wanted to persue it, he could have been an actor himself and probably a pretty good one. He was great with dialects and voices, and he could tell a joke like no one else.

My dad gladly took on a dual role when I found myself single at age 34 with a 2 year old and a 5 year old. He became their caregiver and pretty much their Dad. He had a great relationship with both my girls, and they had a wonderful "Papa" for many years until the emphysema got so bad he was pretty much confined to a chair in the den. He loved them so much, and they loved him too! They took his death really hard, and I know they miss him as do I. If he were here, he would be so proud of the young women they have become, and if you're wondering.....yes, I have cried all the way through writing this. I miss you, Daddy, and there will be many times in the next several years that I will watch your granddaughters meet milestones in their lives and wish you were there, but I will strive to remember at those times that your love will always be with me and them. Happy 75th Daddy!